In order to get back into gambling mode since it seems this lockout is soon to be lifted, I attended a little event on Wednesday July 20th. I wanted to share this story because it was a positive event and I think every once in awhile it’s nice to read an article about athletes and not have the story contain, “….was arrested.”
I attended the Ryan Dempster Family Foundation Casino Night at the Palmer House in Chicago. It was the second annual casino night to help raise funds to increase awareness of 22q11.2 deletion (DiGeorge Syndrome/VCFS) and to reach out to children and their families affected by the disorder. Despite their brutal season and horrific loss to the Phillies on Wednesday, all of the Chicago Cubs were in attendance (although I didn’t see Fukodome). However, since this is a Bears blog, I’ll tilt the story that way.
There was one Bear in attendance last night, Charles “Peanut” Tillman. I’m sure at some point in time, Dempster will return the favor and support Peanut’s Cornerstone 33 Foundation. If they were not mingling, all of the players, including Peanut, served as guest dealers on the tables. I fortunately was able to sit at Peanut’s table because it was surprisingly empty.
All of the Cub players were donning white coats, which drew the attention of the casual fan or the sexy-dressed stalkers. I, on the other hand, spotted Peanut and chose to spend time with a winner. Ouch, I didn’t write that, did I? Anyway, if you saw on the news, Peanut was annoyed with all of the lockout talk, but graciously answered of people who came and went from the table. I asked him how his daughter was doing and he shared she was doing well and thanked me for asking.
Peanut was there the entire evening, giving his time for Dempster’s foundation. I’m sure there were other things he could’ve been doing with his time than taking pictures and signing autographs for free. However, Peanut understands the importance of giving back to the community and utilizing his fame to help others and that should be recognized and commended.
It’s nice to be back for another year of football. Stay tuned for this season’s picks which hopefully starts on time.